Death's Eye
by NetRaptor
Summary: When Madrid the Hunter encounters Jayesh and discovers that he's receiving death threats from inside the Vanguard, they begin investigating. But can they discover the source of the threats before the Cult of Osiris tries to eliminate the one Guardian who has spoken to the Traveler?
1. Chapter 1: Threat

While out for his morning run, Madrid the Hunter stumbled upon a problem.

It was a cool, cloudy day over the Last City. The moon-like Traveler and its fractured, floating pieces were partially obscured. Perfect weather for Madrid's run along the top of the city wall.

Madrid was a hunter who disliked being cooped up in the City, with its endless noise, lights, and crowds of people. Between patrols and missions, he spent his time in physical training. Five-mile runs along the top of the wall suited him perfectly.

He gazed at the mountains as he ran, or out at the countryside outside the City. It refreshed him, calmed his mind, and attuned him to the Light more deeply. As an Awoken, he had a deep attraction to both Light and Darkness, but he felt healthier when he skewed toward the Light side of things.

He ran along the wall's broad top, wearing running shoes, camo pants, and a tank top. His blue skin had taken on a violet tan from being in the sun so much. He wore a backpack with a five-gallon jug of water in it. Aside from providing him with hydration, it simulated the weight of his combat gear.

Every so often, his ghost, Rose, would remark from her phased state, "Heart rate holding steady at one hundred forty-five beats per minute."

"Thanks, Rose," he'd reply inside his head. She was an extremely shy ghost and only emerged from phase when she was positive they were alone. That was fine with Madrid. Safer for both of them.

He was two-thirds of the way back to the new Tower when Rose said, "I recommend you begin your cool down now."

She was an excellent fitness trainer. Madrid slowed to a walk, breathing deeply, relishing the burn in his calves. The top of the wall was deserted, except for a few guards at their posts in the watchtowers every quarter mile. But they knew him by sight and left him alone. One Guardian staying in shape was nothing new.

Nearer the Tower was a watchtower that had been destroyed in the Red Legion's attack. All that was left was part of the wall and the old flooring, the roof and windows sheared off. Madrid leaped lightly up into this broken tower, set a foot against a girder, and stretched his legs.

As he stood there, voices carried up from below. A Guardian and a ghost. Madrid didn't mean to eavesdrop - a disgusting habit acquired by rude, gossipy people - but their conversation sent ice through his veins.

"Should I go to Zavala?" the Guardian was saying. He was a young man - probably a warlock, judging by the robe. "I don't know what to do, Ghost. Maybe I should ignore it."

"It sounds awfully serious to me," Ghost replied. "Someone in the Tower wants to stab us to death? Only hunters use knives like that."

"But why?" the Guardian replied, his voice strained. "Why would someone threaten us? I don't have any enemies - I mean, I've tried to be friendly to everyone. I just don't know what to do."

"Show the note to Zavala," Ghost said. "He'll get Cayde on it. Cayde knows every Hunter in the Vanguard."

The Guardian didn't reply for a long moment. "Ghost, I'm still terrified of Zavala."

"He won't knife us in the heart," Ghost pointed out.

Madrid peered down at the two. The Guardian sat with his feet dangling over the edge of the wall, facing the wilderness, as if the City was too unbearable at the moment. His ghost floated beside him, wearing a basic gray shell.

Madrid thought to Rose, "Who is this kid?"

"His ghost's ID tag says Guardian Jayesh," she replied. "I'm fairly certain he's the one who claimed to speak with the Traveler during the Red Legion's invasion."

Madrid's mind snapped these facts into place. He'd read both Jayesh's original report and the media's smear articles. At first, he'd been convinced that Jayesh was telling the truth, but after dozens of news articles arguing otherwise, Madrid had decided to hold no opinion at all. Neither side could offer concrete proof, so the entire argument was a waste of time.

But if someone was making death threats - someone inside the tower, who might also be a Hunter - that was serious. Guardians should never threaten Guardians. There were too few of them remaining after the Legion's wholesale slaughter, and the awakened Traveler had sent no more ghosts into the world.

Besides, Jayesh interested Madrid. The kid might be a consummate liar ... or he might be telling the truth.

"I'm going to speak to him," he thought to his ghost. "Analyze him for truthfulness."

"It's not easy," Rose replied, "but I'll try."

Madrid jumped off the broken watchtower and landed back in the wall. Then he circled the tower's base toward Jayesh.

Jayesh had heard him coming. He was on his feet in a defensive stance, fire burning in one hand.

"He's a hunter," Jayesh's ghost said, and disappeared in a haze of particles.

Madrid halted, reading the kid at a glance. Dilated pupils, quick breathing, his brown skin gone a sickly yellow. Jayesh was terrified.

Madrid held up both empty hands. "I'm unarmed, don't worry. I happened to overhear your conversation just now. A hunter is threatening you?"

Jayesh didn't move. "Yes. And for all I know, it's you."

Madrid folded his arms. "You're Jayesh, right?"

The warlock nodded.

"I'm Madrid. Been a Guardian a hundred and eighty-three years in March. You know what I don't do? Murder Guardians."

"Somebody wants to," Jayesh replied. "Had a note on my door this morning. They want to pin me and my ghost to the wall with the same knife. Real friendly."

Madrid gazed at him thoughtfully. "That's interesting. This is the first time this has happened?"

Jayesh's gaze raked him. "If you're really not going to hurt me, summon your ghost."

A wise move, Madrid thought. A manifested ghost meant the Guardian was vulnerable. Jayesh wanted proof that Madrid wasn't going to attack him.

"Rose?" Madrid said.

Her fear shivered through him. "Oh no, please, don't make me go out there."

"Rose," Madrid said again, holding out one hand. "You understand what he's asking."

"But he's going to _look_ at me!"

"Of course he'll look at you. You're beautiful. Come on, now."

Jayesh blinked at him, hearing only one side of this conversation.

Madrid's ghost slowly phased into sight above his palm. She wore a red and white custom shell that had been crafted to look like a rose's spiral petals. She turned sideways to Jayesh, not quite hiding, and fixed her eye on Madrid's face.

"There, now," Madrid said, gently stroking Rose's shell. "You'll be fine. Stay here while we talk."

She whimpered.

Jayesh slowly relaxed, letting the fire in his fingers go out. "Your ghost is afraid of people?"

"Shy," Madrid said. "So, death threats. This is the first one?"

"The first one on paper," Jayesh muttered. "I've had lots in emails. I delete them without opening them, now. Or Ghost does it for me."

His ghost phased into being, too. He floated beside Jayesh, watchful and quiet.

Madrid considered this. "Because of your claims about the Traveler?"

Jayesh nodded.

"Do you have the note that was left on your door?"

Jayesh reached into the pocket of his robe and produced a folded scrap of paper.

Madrid held up both hands. "I don't need to see it. I'll escort you to see the Vanguard commander. As a Hunter, myself, this concerns me closely. Cayde-6 may be interested, too."

Jayesh stood there, folding and unfolding the paper. "Why are you helping me? The whole City thinks I'm a liar."

Madrid studied the young Guardian, his smooth face, the beginnings of muscle in his arms and shoulders. A very young Guardian, then. He also noticed when Jayesh's gaze shifted to the distant Traveler, wandering across the vast floating fragments to the Light that burned within the sphere's heart.

"If you had been inside it when it awoke," Madrid said, "you would be dead."

"He sheltered us," Jayesh said faintly. "And it still almost wiped out Ghost and me." He suddenly glared at Madrid. "But if you think I'm lying, what's the point of even talking about it? I gave my honest report to the Vanguard. That's all."

Madrid stood in silence, thoughtful. Rose had watched Jayesh without seeming to watch him. Now she whispered to Madrid, "No lying tells. No self-grooming or facial tics. He's telling the truth as he knows it."

Jayesh didn't hear this, but Ghost did. He shot straight up to Madrid and Rose. "It _is_ the truth! I was there, and I didn't want to be!"

Rose may have been shy of humans, but fellow ghosts were another matter. She zipped between Ghost and Madrid. "Are you threatening my Guardian?"

"Are you calling my Guardian a liar?" Ghost retorted.

"No," Rose said, lowering her voice. "I've been analyzing him. He appears to be telling the truth."

Ghost's temper deflated. "Oh." He backed away a few feet, his segments drawn together in an embarrassed expression. "Oh. I'm sorry."

"Ghost," Jayesh said in the weary tone a parent might use on a wayward toddler. "Just ... leave them alone."

Ghost returned to his post beside Jayesh's shoulder, his eye downcast.

Madrid observed this encounter in silence. "How interesting," he said. "I've never heard of a ghost who was capable of lying. If he says you were there, your story gains credibility."

"You never said why you want to help me," Jayesh said, looking slightly more hopeful.

Madrid shrugged. "Even if you lied, nobody deserves death threats. And if you told the truth, why, you're even less deserving. Let me shower and we'll go to the commanders."

Jayesh followed him back into the Tower at a safe distance, keeping his ghost close and talking in an undertone.

Rose phased as soon as Madrid let her. As they walked, he thought, "What do you think of this situation?"

"His ghost is damaged," she replied very quietly. "Not physically. His heart. He carries incredible pain for his Guardian. It ... I've never seen it before. I don't know how it can be fixed."

"Well," Madrid thought, "we can start by alerting the commanders that someone in the Tower is threatening to murder one of their Guardians."

* * *

While Madrid cleaned up, Jayesh went to find Ikora Rey.

As the Warlock Vanguard, he reported to her for mission assignments and inspections. Since the loss of their old Tower, Ikora had staked out a balcony as her new office. Tables with computers and warlock-related equipment were set in a half-circle. Ikora paced around this circle, tracking reports from warlocks in the field, issuing orders, and managing the spy network nobody was supposed to know about.

She smiled as Jayesh approached. "Hello, Guardian. What brings you here? Your next tour of duty isn't until next week."

Jayesh pulled out the scrap of paper. "I found this stuck in my door this morning."

Ikora took the paper and unfolded it. Her face hardened into a frown, then a scowl. She handed it back to him. "I wondered if the harassment you've been suffering would reach this level. Apparently, there are malcontents even among the Vanguard."

"What do I do?" Jayesh muttered through his teeth.

Ikora held up one hand and summoned a purple ball of void magic. It hurt his eyes just looking at it.

"You are a Guardian," she replied in a low voice. "If anyone attacks you, no matter who they are, defend yourself. You carry not only the power of the Light, but the Traveler's blessing."

"But ..." Jayesh looked at his ghost. "What if they capture Ghost, first?"

"Fight harder," Ikora said grimly. "Your ghost is your partner, and you have an obligation to protect him, as he has an obligation to heal you." She gave Ghost a hard look. "You track enemies in the field. You must be wary and watch for enemies among the Vanguard as well."

"Ikora," Ghost said, "I can't read minds. Do I flag all previous friendlies as enemies?"

Ikora closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead. "For the time being, yes. Speak to Zavala and Cayde about this. I'm afraid there may be more happening here than meets the eye."

Jayesh bowed, although he didn't feel any better. "Thank you, commander."

He strode back through the halls of the new headquarters, trying to look busy and not frightened. Ghost phased out of sight, but Jayesh felt trickles of his paranoia. Any one of the crowds around them might have left the note. A human - a Guardian - Awoken - Exo - anyone.

"Jay," Ghost said, "I hate to bring this up, but ..."

"Spit it out," Jayesh said, braced for more bad news.

"Your dinner with Kari Winters is tonight at seven o'clock."

An entirely new set of worries crashed into Jayesh's consciousness. Kari was an experienced warlock who operated at a much higher level than he did. He and Kari had been on the same fireteam the previous week. They had saved each other's lives when the mission went sour. She had gifted him a large amount of glimmer with the stipulation that he use some of it to take her out to dinner.

Kari might have ideas about the note's writer. She had been a Guardian longer than he had been alive, before or after his resurrection.

Jayesh's roaming feet carried him back to the dormitory, where Madrid was just emerging from his room. Madrid now wore the light fire suit that went under combat armor, knee-high boots, and a Hunter's cloak with a hood, currently pushed back. His indigo hair was freshly combed, and his yellow eyes glowed in the dim hallway. He also carried a pistol at his hip with the immense barrel of a hand cannon, and a long knife in a sheath.

Jayesh froze, heart pounding against his ribs. Why had he ever trusted a Hunter? Madrid could murder him in a second. One flick of that knife, and-

Madrid raised a hand in greeting. "Hope you didn't wait long. Let's find Zavala before he breaks for lunch."

Jayesh breathed again. His own fears had turned all Guardians into enemies.

He fell in behind Madrid again, but Madrid halted and waited for him to catch up. "Don't treat me like a superior," Madrid said. "We're both Guardians. Period."

Jayesh blinked at the imposing Awoken. "Thanks. It means a lot."

They matched strides across the courtyard of Vanguard headquarters and walked out on the jutting buttress where Zavala spent his time when not overseeing field missions. Sure enough, the Vanguard Commander was at the far end, talking to two Titans in full armor. Jayesh and Madrid halted and waited until the Titans departed for the hanger.

Zavala beckoned them forward. "What brings you here today?"

Madrid jerked his head at Jayesh. "My friend, here, found an interesting note in his door this morning."

Jayesh pulled out the note with unsteady fingers and passed it to Zavala.

Zavala gazed at Jayesh for a long second before unfolding the note. He read it without expression and handed it back.

Jayesh tucked the note back in his pocket and tried to meet Zavala's piercing gaze. Another Awoken, Zavala's eyes glowed laser-blue. Jayesh hadn't spoken to his former commander since dropping out of the Titan discipline. He was acutely aware of how he had let Zavala down.

The commander folded his hands behind his back. "This is about your time with the Traveler, isn't it?"

Jayesh gulped. "Yes sir. I don't know for sure. I've been getting threats like this over email for months, but this is the first one from inside the Vanguard."

Zavala turned his back and gazed at the Traveler. The sky had cleared, and the great moon-construct towered into the sky above the City. Jayesh gazed at the Traveler, too. Some of his tension calmed. All he had to do was remember the touch of the Light and the voice of the avatar the Traveler had created to speak with him. It made his current worries seem so small, when the Traveler concerned itself with the vast matters of a cosmic war against the Darkness.

Madrid ventured, "We were worried it might have come from a Hunter, because of the knife mentioned."

"Are you aware," Zavala said without turning, "that Titans often carry swords?"

This revelation struck Jayesh like ice water in the face.

Zavala faced them again. "Are you also familiar with the teachings of Osiris?"

Jayesh had never heard the name. He shook his head. Madrid, however, folded his arms and scowled.

"Osiris was the former Vanguard Commander," Zavala said with distaste. "He was obsessed with a quest for knowledge. Among his other heresies, he postulated that the Traveler is a worker of evil. Had it not come to us, Earth's great civilizations would still be standing."

Jayesh opened his mouth, stunned both at the question of how anyone could think this, while seeing the logic in it.

"He was banished from the City for causing unrest among the populace," Zavala went on. "But he still has a cult following living among us today. Even some Guardians have been swayed to his heresies." Zavala gestured to Jayesh. "Your report of communing with the Traveler, and of what it said to you, have angered them. They are responsible for the media attacks against you. They are likely also responsible for that note."

Jayesh stood in stunned silence. It was too much to take in. Again, he had run afoul of his sheer ignorance of this new world to which he had awakened. But now the vicious news articles made sense. If someone believed the Traveler was a threat, and someone else came along and told how how it had struggled to save humanity - loved humans, in fact - it would challenge their entire worldview. How much easier to silence that person than to question and perhaps change their own thinking.

"You have been in danger for months," Zavala said. "However, I believed you safe among the Vanguard or out on missions, so I said nothing. But now, you are safe nowhere."

Jayesh cleared his throat, trying to control his voice. "Ikora told me to defend myself ... with lethal force ... sir."

Zavala nodded. "While I despise turning Guardians against Guardians, in this case, it is your only recourse."

Standing there, the wind ruffling his hair, Jayesh felt small and alone, the Traveler miles and miles away.

"But I hear you single-handedly destroyed a Vex Gate Lord," Zavala said with a rare smile. "Ikora has trained you well."

That was as good as forgiveness, coming from the High Commander. Jayesh's face grew hot. "Thank you, Commander."

It wasn't until he and Madrid had departed in search of Cayde that it occurred to Jayesh that Zavala had never questioned his report about speaking to the Traveler. Zavala not only believed him, he had seen this trouble coming.

This was both reassuring and frightening.


	2. Chapter 2: Fireteam

While this had been going on, Ghost and Rose had been communicating on the exclusive channel frequency that only a being made of Light could access.

"Now I understand," Rose was saying, as Zavala explained about the followers of Osiris. "You've been protecting your Guardian from further harm. Do you read those emails you filter for him?"

"Yes," Ghost replied. "You can't imagine the filth they contain. I'd rather clean out a Hive infestation than check his email, sometimes."

The two were quiet, listening to the conversation and attending to the emotions flowing through their Guardians.

"How do you do it?" Rose asked suddenly. "I rarely fear for Madrid's life. He's simply too good. But you and your Guardian are so inexperienced."

Ghost took his time about answering. While his first instinct was to grow angry, Rose didn't deserve that. She was too soft-spoken, and she only asked because she cared.

"It's been hard," Ghost replied, finally. "I searched for my Guardian for so many years. His final death was the result of murder."

Rose gasped.

"For some reason," Ghost continued, "that's shadowed him through his resurrection and into Guardianhood. I've done my best, but I had no idea that finding my Guardian would hurt this much."

"Well," Rose said softly, "I think you're very brave. I'm not."

"If your Guardian ever falls into grave danger," Ghost assured her, "you'll find out how brave you can be. Love drives us to do the impossible."

Rose was quiet for a moment. "I wish I understood that."

"You've never sacrificed for your Guardian?"

"No," she replied in a small voice. "From the time I resurrected him, he's been so ... self-sufficient. I'm his friend. Nothing more."

"He loves you," Ghost pointed out. "I've never seen a custom shell as intricate as yours."

"I suppose so," Rose said. "I hadn't thought about it. Lots of Guardians pamper their ghosts. That's why I can't understand why ..." She trailed off, as if reluctant to voice such a rude observation.

"Why I'm still wearing the same shell I've worn for a thousand years?" Ghost replied dryly. "My Guardian hasn't had time or glimmer to fashion me another. He keeps me polished and cleaned. I couldn't ask for better care."

"I'm sorry," Rose replied. "That's none of my business. I shouldn't have asked."

"It's all right," Ghost replied. "Let's see what Cayde-6 has to say."

* * *

Cayde-6 was an Exo, Commander of the Vanguard Hunters. He had set up his office in the depths of the hanger. There he managed patrols, resource gathering, and kept a wary eye on the Dead Orbit representatives across the way.

"Look at those nut jobs," Cayde said randomly as Madrid and Jayesh approached. "Ready to ditch this whole planet and head into the cosmos. I don't know about you, but I'm fond of, you know, oxygen and liquid water."

"Let's not get into politics," Madrid said. "How're things, Cayde?"

He and his commander bumped fists.

"Can't complain," Cayde said, folding his arms and leaning against a pole. "About time for me to head to IO and update patrol routes. Great thing about camping in the hanger. Nobody says, 'Where you going, Cayde? You can't leave, Cayde. You have paperwork to fill out, Cayde'."

He glanced around Madrid and spotted Jayesh. "Hey, you're the kid I saw hugging the Traveler. Warlock, now. Too bad about that."

Jayesh's face burned furiously. When the Traveler had set him back in the City, Cayde had been right there. He was the only other person to see the Traveler's avatar. He stepped forward and held out the note. "Yes sir. I found this on my door this morning."

Cayde took the note and gazed at it. It was hard to read the Exo face, as it was a metal-plated facsimile of a human face with glowing blue eye lenses. But Cayde's eyes narrowed to slits. He didn't reply immediately. He folded the note and tapped it against his metal palm, gazing across the hanger, where a ship was taking off.

Jayesh waited, trying not to fidget. Madrid stood impassive beside him. Cayde had been his commander since Cayde took the station, and Madrid was used to the way he operated.

Abruptly Cayde drew his knife and held it up. "See this?"

Jayesh tried not to flinch. "Yes, sir."

Cayde gestured along its length with one hand. "This blade is twelve inches of tempered steel. By the time it passed through your ghost and you, there wouldn't be enough left to stick you to the wall. You see?"

"We'd be dead, though," Jayesh said.

Cayde inclined his head. "Point. What I'm trying to say is, this is supposed to scare you. As threats go, it's ridiculous. But yeah. Somebody in the Vanguard is after you. Might be a Guardian. Might be staff."

"Zavala said it might be the followers of Osiris," Jayesh said.

Cayde sheathed his knife and handed the note back. "Definitely could be them. We've got a lot of crazies in the Vanguard. Ever talk to Future War Cult? Right half the time, but crazy."

Jayesh had to earn at least three promotions before any of the political factions would look at him. "What do I do, then? Ikora and Zavala only said to defend myself."

"You got a fire team?" Cayde asked.

Jayesh shook his head.

"Get one," Cayde said, pointing at him. "Friends you can trust. They'll watch your back. If some idiot does try to attack a Guardian right in Vanguard HQ, make 'em regret it. I know you're only a Warlock, but even Warlocks can fight a little."

Ghost guffawed in Jayesh's head.

"Meantime, I'll put out some feelers," Cayde said. "I've got a good crop of Hunters running right now. They may not be Ikora's Hidden - oops, did I say that out loud? My bad - but Hunters hear things, too. They'll know who around here is into Osiris. Easy to tell, really. They can't shut up about him. Damn fanboys."

"Thanks, sir," Jayesh said. "And I did think about being a Hunter. But I like my books too much."

Cayde opened both hands. "No hard feelings, Guardian. You earned your stripes. Don't let sinister notes get you down. Come back this time tomorrow and I'll let you know what I've heard, all right?"

They said goodbye to Cayde and walked back upstairs to the top of the wall. Jayesh felt a little better - Cayde's assurance that the threat was ridiculous gave him better perspective. But how to find a fire team? That was three people who ran missions together and became friends, too. Cayde, Zavala, and Ikora had been a fire team for years, and their battle to retake the City from the Red Legion was quickly becoming legend. Jayesh didn't have any real friends except Ghost.

"I've got City patrol this afternoon," Madrid said. "Keeping the Fallen on their toes. Will you be all right?"

"I think so," Jayesh said, forcing a smile that was braver than he felt. "I'm going out to dinner with a friend tonight."

"Oh really?" Madrid arched an eyebrow. "Anybody I know?"

"Kari Winters."

Madrid grinned. "Ah, Kari. I've been on missions with her before. Helped rebuild her ghost one time when he got shot down. Is this dinner ... or a date?"

"She called it a victory dinner," Jayesh said firmly. "She's a lot older than me, Madrid."

The Hunter punched his shoulder. "So what? You're both adults, and Guardians don't age that fast. Good luck out there, all right?"

Jayesh nodded and watched Madrid depart. He would make an interesting friend. But Jayesh had been curled up so tightly inside himself for so long, he wasn't sure how to develop any kind of relationship.

"Ghost," he thought, "how do you make friends with someone?"

"Take interest in them," Ghost replied. "Talk. Find things you both are interested in. People like you if you like them."

That didn't sound so bad. Jayesh walked back to his room to shower. "What do you think of Madrid? Can we trust him?"

"I think so," Ghost said. "I talked to his ghost, Rose. He's such an incredible fighter that she's only resurrected him four times. Four times! I've spoken to ghosts who have resurrected their Guardians hundreds of times."

Hundreds of deaths. Jayesh's stomach twisted. "They ... they probably weren't buried in a cave-in, though, right?"

Ghost groaned. "Jay, I'm still sorry about that. It took so long to dig you out, I had to bring you back while you were still trapped."

"Twice," Jayesh added. The crushing weight and pain had haunted his nightmares ever since that mission. He forced the memories away and tried to think about other things. "So ... Madrid's a good guy."

"Yes," Ghost replied, as they entered the dormitory. "He's as solid as they come. For a Hunter. In fact, I ..."

Ghost's voice died away. Jayesh had reached his door. Another folded scrap of paper had been wedged between the door and the jam. They stared at it, then scanned up and down the hall. But they were alone.

"I don't want to touch it," Jayesh whispered.

"Don't open it - I might be able to read the writing through the paper," Ghost said. "Let's get inside. We're not safe out here."

Jayesh unlocked the door, picked up the paper by one edge, and entered his room with a nervous look into all the corners. He locked the door behind them and tossed the paper on the tiny table.

Ghost phased into sight and hovered over the paper, sweeping it with a scanning beam. Jayesh felt him shudder in cold horror.

"Burn it," Ghost said.

"What's it say?"

"More of the same," Ghost said shortly. "And a photo. Of us. This morning. Burn it."

Jayesh had to see this. He unfolded the paper and a tiny photo fell out. It showed him walking behind Madrid, talking to Ghost. The angle was high, as if the photographer had been on a second or third floor balcony.

The sort of position a sniper would take.

Silently Jayesh tucked the photo back into the paper, summoned fire to his fingertips, and ignited it. He tossed it in the tiny kitchen sink and let it burn to ash, turning on the exhaust fan to draw out the smoke.

Jayesh and Ghost stared at each other in silence. Then they gazed at the blackened remains of the paper.

"I need a fire team," Jayesh said.

* * *

Kari was waiting outside the restaurant when Jayesh arrived. As she waited, she paced and tried not to run her fingers through her short, auburn hair one more time.

"Calm down, Kari," said her ghost, Neko. "It's not a date, remember?"

"Of course it's not," Kari agreed. "I wouldn't dress like this for a date." She wore one of her combat robes, a deep blue one with watered-silk camouflage worked into it. The inside was woven plasteel mesh, making it light, but tough. Beneath it were a pair of matching blue fatigues and her more dressy combat boots.

Neko floated beside her, gleaming in a matching midnight blue shell. He looked at her and sighed. "It wouldn't kill you to wear real clothes for a change. Or maybe go somewhere unarmed."

Kari patted her sidearm. "This is only a small one. You can barely tell it's there."

Ghost gazed down the street, watching the stream of traffic. "I'm picking up Jayesh's tag. Yellow cab."

The car pulled to the curb, and Jayesh got out, swiping his glimmer chip. He, too, wore his nicest robe, which also happened to be heavily armored for combat. He had medium-brown skin and an Asian set to his features, but his hair was deep brown instead of jet black.

He looked around, spotted Kari, and waved with a smile. He walked up and they shook hands. "Hello, Kari! Hello, Neko."

"Good to finally see you, Jayesh," Kari said. "And hello to Ghost, wherever he is."

"Phased," Jayesh said, his smile fading. "We've been having some problems. I'll tell you inside."

This left Kari hanging in suspense as they entered the restaurant and were given a quiet back booth. Jayesh and Ghost were fighting with each other? Or, together, they faced a bigger problem?

"What's going on, then?" Kari asked as they examined their menus.

Ghost finally phased into sight beside Jayesh, looking around cautiously. "I think it's clear, Jay. Nobody is near enough to overhear."

In a low voice, Jayesh told her about the threatening notes and the advice the Vanguard commanders had given him. As she listened, Kari dug her fingernails into the edges of the menu until they left marks in the plastic.

When he finished, Kari said, very quietly, "I'm going to find out who's behind this. And I'm going to kill them. Multiple times."

Jayesh grinned, a little unsteadily. "Thanks, but ... what if it's not a Guardian?"

"Then I only have to kill them once," Kari said through her teeth.

Jayesh gazed solemnly at his menu. "I wish it wouldn't come to that."

"Look," Kari said, "I'm in the same boat. The Traveler healed me, itself. The only reason I'm not getting threats is because I've kept it secret. You had to go file a report on the Vanguard's public servers."

"They wanted to know why I hadn't fought the Red Legion," Jayesh muttered. "Those kinds of reports aren't considered classified. I didn't control where it was filed."

"Still," Kari said, "what's done is done. If Zavala thinks it's the Osiris people, he's probably right. It gives us a place to start." She pointed at Jayesh. "I want you to go on a nice, long scouting patrol. Two or three weeks' worth. Maybe in the EDZ, maybe on the moon."

Jayesh set his menu down and looked at Ghost. "What do you think?"

"It'll get you out of the middle of trouble," Ghost agreed. "Give Kari and Madrid a chance to snoop."

"Madrid?" Kari said, straightening. "You know Madrid?"

"Met him today," Jayesh said. "We kind of made friends, I think. He was interested in my problem. Talked to Cayde for me."

Kari nodded thoughtfully. "Madrid's trustworthy. I always thought he should have been a Titan, as solid as he is, but he's too independent."

"Cayde said I need a fire team," Jayesh said. "I guess this is the beginning of one."

Kari smiled, some of her anger cooling. "It's a good start. You need a couple of experienced Guardians in your corner. Two Warlocks and a Hunter. All we need is a Titan and we're set."

"Know any?" Jayesh asked.

This turned the conversation to Guardian gossip, a topic of consuming interest to them both. They ordered their dinner from a robot waiter, and talked as they waited.

* * *

Ghost and Neko spoke over their private channel.

"I thought this nonsense had stopped," Neko said. "I hadn't seen you two mentioned in the newsfeeds in days."

"Apparently it's taken a turn for the worse," Ghost said. "Before we came, tonight, they had left a photo on the door. They're watching us from somewhere within the Vanguard."

"If they're watching you that closely," Neko said, "what if your Guardian does go on patrol? And he's assigned a partner? And the partner waits until you're out in the wilderness somewhere, and offs you?"

Ghost shivered his segments. "That's a possibility I hadn't thought of. Aren't patrols solo?"

"Not always." Neko gazed thoughtfully at their Guardians. "You're his biggest weakness, you know. It doesn't matter how many times they kill him, you can bring him back. But if they kill you ..."

"I know," Ghost muttered. "I've tried to stay phased as much as possible. Madrid's ghost, Rose, only comes out if he orders her to."

"I know," Neko laughed. "In all the missions we've run, I think I've seen her one time. She seems really nice, though."

"Yes," Ghost agreed. "Gosh, I don't know what to do, Neko. I can't identify our enemies. If they were Hive or Fallen, sure, but other Guardians ..."

"That's the worst thing," Neko said. "One thing I'd advise is to practice phasing while being held."

"Contact disrupts the calculations," Ghost said. "I'd be afraid I'd take off somebody's fingers."

"If an enemy grabs you," Neko said, "taking off their fingers is a bonus. You'd likely have less than a second to react before they smashed you into a wall."

"Or stuck a knife through my core," Ghost said. "Or shot me. Why don't they make heavy armor for us?"

"We couldn't fly with a bunch of added weight," Neko said. "Imagine the humiliation of going around on wheels. 'Guardian, wait for me!'"

Both ghosts laughed.


	3. Chapter 3: Interrogation

Madrid rode his sparrow across the countryside beyond the walls of the Last City, investigating a report of Fallen invaders harassing the cattle herds. He still had several miles to go. The countryside was open and quiet, miles of grassy hills, little streams, and lines of trees planted as windbreaks. He had room to think out here.

The matter with Jayesh ate at him. Who among the Vanguard adhered so closely to Osiris's teachings that they'd be threatened by one rookie's claims about a benevolent Traveler? All Guardians sensed the Traveler's generosity every time they drew on its Light, every time their ghost healed or resurrected them. It was one reason why most of the Cult of Osiris were ordinary humans. It gave them an excuse to envy Guardians in earnest.

He considered the hundreds of Guardians he had worked with over the years. So many of them had died in the invasion, his number of acquaintances were sadly diminished. Bull, Zeralda, Kelly, Hau, Shira, Matthew. All good Guardians of various disciplines, all unlikely to doubt the Traveler.

Madrid smelled the cattle before he saw them. He stopped his sparrow and walked the last quarter mile, so as not to spook the animals. The cattle grazed in a meadow, knee-deep in grass. Here and there trotted a cowboy on a horse, keeping an eye out for Fallen raiders. These cattle were a vital part of the Last City's food supply, and every cowboy out here was also a Guardian Hunter, their rifles slung across their saddles.

One Guardian spotted Madrid and cantered toward him, his horse snorting at the sight of a stranger. All the horses had been trained to recognize Fallen by scent and sight, and reacted to them as they would any other predator. Madrid was strange, but not Fallen.

The Guardian was an Exo in leather armor and a broad-brimmed hat to keep the sun from glinting off his metal. He saluted.

Madrid saluted back. "Hear you've been having trouble with raiders."

"Yesterday," the other Hunter replied. They exchanged information about the location and the direction the attackers had fled when the cowboys drove them off.

After that, conversation turned to Vanguard doings. By degrees, Madrid broached the topic of the Cult of Osiris threatening a Guardian.

"That cult." The Exo spat into the grass. "I broke up with a girl over them. Yaleesa Brock, ever met her? She bought into their propaganda. Warlock, took the Voidwalker class and been spiraling into Darkness ever since. We split when she told me the Light and the Darkness were the same, so I might as well join her in studying the Deeps. I don't want anything to do with that crap, man. I'm not another damn Toland."

A Warlock. Madrid's heart skipped a beat. Jayesh would never suspect a fellow Warlock of being an enemy.

"Rose," he thought, "notify Jayesh's ghost."

"Message queued," his ghost replied, "but we're out of range. I'll send it as soon as we're nearer the City."

Madrid glanced at the City walls in the blue distance. He'd simply have to finish this patrol as quickly as possible and warn Jayesh to be on the lookout.

Surely he wasn't already too late.

* * *

Jayesh and Kari shared a pleasant dinner, after all. In fact, Jayesh forgot his problems as Kari regaled him with story after story of her adventures among the planets and moons. He and Ghost laughed as they hadn't in months.

They took Kari's sparrow back to the wall and Vanguard headquarters. As they climbed the stairs toward the dormitory wing, Kari said, "Thanks for the lovely evening."

"No - thank you!" Jayesh replied, grinning. "It was nice to get out of my own head for a change."

"When's your next tour of duty?" Kari asked. "I'll see if I can get assigned to the same one. They do like to keep fire teams together."

Jayesh told her the details of his mission, which was to the old arcology on Saturn's moon Titan. He and Kari parted ways. She continued upstairs to the better apartments, and he followed the long hall toward his tiny room.

"Jayesh," Ghost said in his head, "I just received an alert from Madrid's ghost, Rose."

A door opened and another Warlock stepped into the hall. Jayesh knew her by sight, but had never spoken to her. She was shorter than him, dressed as if headed for a mission, her combat robe belted, weapons hung around her. He smiled and nodded, stepping to one side to allow her to pass.

Ghost went on, "There's a Warlock named Yaleesa Brock who is a follower of Osiris-"

As the other Warlock passed Jayesh, she lashed out with one arm and drove him into the wall. He hit hard, taken off guard by this sudden attack. She drew a pistol and aimed it at his face. He grabbed her wrist and forced it away. He was unarmed. They struggled, panting in furious silence, struggling for possession of the pistol.

With her other hand, Yaleesa punched Jayesh in the face with Void energy. His head snapped backward, his skull hitting the wall with a wet thud. He crumpled to the floor.

Yaleesa shot him. Then she retreated back into her dorm room.

Ghost phased into being as soon as she was gone, fuming and frightened. He swept Jayesh with a resurrection beam, rebuilding his body with Light. "Now we know who's gunning for us. Jayesh, Guardian, get up, we need to run for it."

Jayesh awoke, stunned and disoriented. "I just died, didn't I?"

"Yes, and you'll die again if we don't hurry-"

Yaleesa's door flew open. Ghost and Jayesh looked at her and realized her plan - murdering Jayesh had forced Ghost out in order to resurrect him. She had been after Ghost all along.

In one lightning-quick move, she slapped Ghost with the same burst of Void energy. He smashed into the wall with a cracking sound, bounced off Jayesh's shoulder, and rolled to a halt on the floor, his eye extinguished. His spark tugged at Jayesh's as it guttered toward death.

Jayesh opened his mouth to scream, but Yaleesa punched him with a magic-driven fist. The world went dark.

* * *

Jayesh stood atop a high cliff, his hands tied behind him. He was much younger, and had never heard of Guardians or ghosts.

Before him stood a group of grim-looking men, clad in leather and furs against the bitter mountain wind. They had stripped Jayesh of his clothing, leaving him in his undershirt, exposed to the elements. Not that it would matter in a minute.

"Jubal, please," he begged. "Listen to me for once in your life. The priests have lied to you for years. They keep the chieftains enslaved to fear of a stone god our ancestors didn't know. They've got their hooks in you, too. Please, don't do this!"

His brother gazed at him, his eyes as cold as the snow underfoot. "You've thrown off our ways, Jayesh. The priests have decreed your death."

"But not you?" Jayesh said. "What do you decree, Jubal?"

For a second, doubt flickered in his brother's eyes. Then one of his companions shouted, "Death to the heretic!"

"I decree that justice be done," Jubal said. He stepped forward and slammed the butt of his spear into Jayesh's chest. Jayesh fell backward off the cliff ... down and down, striking the rock, shattered before he hit the ground half a mile below.

* * *

Slowly Jayesh swam back to consciousness. His eyes struggled to focus on the strange points of light around him. Stars? No, candles. Dozens and dozens of candles.

He was sitting up, tied to a concrete support pillar that supported the ceiling. The whole room was concrete and smelled of musty basement. In front of him was a small wooden table with a large bowl on it, currently empty. Jayesh and the table were surrounded by a wide ring of candles. The warmth of their flames touched his face.

Nearby, outside the ring, were a group of people in brown robes with bright yellow designs stitched into them. Each hood bore the sign of an open eye. The only person not wearing one was Yaleesa. She leaned against the wall in the shadows, arms folded, watching.

Across the room, on another tiny table, lay Ghost. Jayesh drew a breath that was nearly a sob. He couldn't feel his connection to Ghost at all. Had he lost him forever? Was there any hope he could be fixed, his spark recalled?

"The false prophet has awakened," one of the hooded people said.

They gathered around the outside of the circle, their eyes glittering under the hoods as they peered at him. Jayesh gazed at them, bemused, head pounding, the dream of his first death still fresh in his mind. He had been a heretic then, and he still was now. All because he sought the truth.

"Why are you doing this?" he asked. "And why did you kill my ghost?"

"So we can destroy you properly," a woman said. "You filthy false prophet, spreading your lies."

The man in the center lowered his hood. Jayesh had seen him around headquarters, but he couldn't place him. A square, stocky man, with huge calloused hands.

"We are the Cult of Osiris," the man said. "Osiris questioned the nature of the machine we call the Traveler. It grants power only to a chosen few, you detestable Guardians. Now we're forced to lick the boots of the Vanguard because they have power and we don't."

Jayesh recognized the man at last. "You're Bill Cooper, the foreman rebuilding the east sector."

"Silence!" Bill snapped. "I didn't give you permission to speak."

"Thank you," Jayesh said. "You do good work."

Bill gaped at him, shocked into momentary silence.

Jayesh gazed at the other cultists. He should have been angry, or frightened, but all he felt was sadness. It partially came from watching his brother and tribe slip further and further into bondage under a tyrannical priesthood. He had been on the side of cultists such as these, once - those who questioned the status quo, who sought real truth.

These people believed they had found it, and that he was their enemy.

Bill recovered his voice, forcing a smirk onto his face. "Well well, this Risen abomination has a silver tongue, doesn't he?"

"I say we cut it out," said another man. "We don't need any more of his propaganda."

Bill raised a hand. "Not yet. The false prophet must give an account of himself, first. It's why we're here."

So that was it. They wanted him to talk about the Traveler so they could kill him for it. Jayesh groped for a plan, an idea, anything. But all he could think of was Ghost, lying alone on that distant table.

"Can I have my ghost?" he asked.

"No," Bill said. "Did you really enter that evil machine in the sky?"

"You read my report," Jayesh said.

"Yes, but did you?" Bill pressed.

"Yes."

The cultists shifted and muttered.

"Tell us, Guardian," said another woman, "why did the machine blight Earth with its presence?"

"It looks for people who crave Light," Jayesh replied, not sure why he was bothering. "When it found us, we had Light already. He was astonished."

The cultists muttered again, louder this time, repeating his words incredulously. In the shadows, Yaleesa stirred, too, adjusting her position and gazing sharply at their captive.

They were curious, Jayesh realized. They may hate every word he said, but they were dying to know more, too.

"How did Earth already have Light?" a woman asked.

Jayesh tried to remember what the Traveler had said. "He said that others of his kind had walked among us in different guise. I don't know what that means."

The cultists fell to arguing among themselves, dragging up snatches of poetry and strange quotations. Jayesh tried to follow it, but his head swam. The blow that had knocked him out had left him sore and dizzy, probably with a concussion. He leaned his head against the concrete pillar.

They must be under the City wall somewhere. A disused store room, maybe. There was one door at the far end of the room, its paint peeling around the edges. He had the sense that he hadn't been knocked out for too long.

"Ghost," he cried in his head. "Ghost, please wake up."

No answer. No feeling of that companion spark, so similar to his own. Jayesh was utterly, deeply alone.

"Traveler," he thought, "why did you allow this? Both my lives have been so short, ended because I told the truth."

No voice replied, but for a second, he felt the Light touch him, warm and electrical. The Traveler hadn't forgotten him. Jayesh reached for that Light and discovered his super charge, ready and waiting.

"They're humans," he thought. "I can't use this on them. It's not even a fair fight."

The Light touched him again, communicating an idea he couldn't grasp. Jayesh struggled to focus through his headache. "What is it, Traveler? What are you telling me?"

Bill interrupted his thoughts. "You, Guardian. Why did the machine create your kind? Surely it knew you were a superior race."

"It tried to protect Earth from the Darkness," Jayesh replied. "It was injured and sank into a coma. But as it did, it sent out the ghosts to create protectors who would defend Earth in its place."

The cultists shouted their disagreement. They yelled things about Risen and warlords. They raged about Toland's betrayal. From what Jayesh could understand, they claimed that Guardians were no better than the people they claimed to protect.

"We're still human," Jayesh said. "We still make bad choices. I wish it weren't so." His gaze slipped to Yaleesa. She looked away.

The cultists yelled about this, too. They were psyching up to kill him.

"Ghost," Jayesh lamented in his head, gazing at the pathetic shape on the table across the room. "Please, please ..."

No answer. His super charge beat within him, hotter and more powerful by the minute. The Traveler was pouring Light into him - but why?

"One last question," Bill shouted, quieting the room. "Guardian, the Traveler let us die by the thousands as the Red Legion attacked. It betrayed your kind, too, when your Light was cut off. How can you still be loyal to it?"

Jayesh wracked his brain for an answer. He couldn't make them understand the Traveler's compassion for Ghaul. A phrase the Traveler had said arose from his memory. "Precious in the sight of the Traveler is the death of its Guardians."

The cultists roared in fury. They rushed the circle of candles, leaped inside, and grabbed him, cutting the cords that bound him to the pillar. They dragged Jayesh forward and held him over the empty bowl on the table. A hand grabbed his hair and pulled his head back, exposing his throat. Someone produced a knife. It glittered in the candle light.

"Now we will shed the blood of this false prophet," Bill boomed. "We will drink it and gain his Light as he dies. Ready now-"

"What do I do, Traveler?" Jayesh thought desperately. "I'm about to explode with Light - but Ghost -"

The two thoughts fused in his mind. Understanding blazed through him.

Jayesh raised his head, staring between the cultists at Ghost, empty and alone on the other table. Jayesh drew on that vast, stored Light, the fiery wings and sword it granted him, the mighty power of the Dawnblade-

-and funneled all of it into Ghost.


	4. Chapter 4: Courage

The Light could be used to kill and destroy. But it could also heal, strengthen, and rebuild.

Ghost's life spark had dwindled to the smallest ember. He had not yet flown back to the Traveler, but his time was short. Teetering on the edge of death, only Jayesh's distressed calling of his name held him there.

Then came the surge of Jayesh's entire Dawnblade supercharge.

It washed into Ghost in a tide of burning fire. It rekindled his spark in an instant, blazing to life like a comet encountering the sun. He awoke with a gasp, his entire core burning hot.

Ghost instantly knew several things. He was alive, but his shell was shattered. His core wasn't even attached to it properly anymore. The second thing was that Jayesh was dying among the people crowded around him.

"Jay!" Ghost screamed into his Guardian's mind. He struggled to fly, but his broken shell only rocked back and forth.

"Ghost," came Jayesh's wavering thought. "You're alive!"

Then Ghost felt his Guardian die. He hated that feeling - the awful, sinking sensation as something vital drained from his companion's body, the soul falling silent. "Jay," he whispered, unable to fly to him.

A pair of hands closed around Ghost and lifted him off the table. He looked up at Yaleesa, traitor Guardian.

"You're not dead?" she said in disgust. "I can fix that."

This was exactly what Neko had warned him about. Ghost phased. But since his shell was broken, only his core disappeared - just as Yaleesa hit him with a Void blast.

His broken shell fell to pieces in her hands. She gave a single laugh and carried it toward the sacrificial circle, not noticing that the core wasn't among the ruins.

Ghost hung in the air, phased, and saw what they had done to Jayesh. They had cut his throat, let him bleed out into a bowl, and were preparing to drink it, cups in hand. The traitor Guardian dumped Ghost's broken shell into the blood. Jayesh's body lay forgotten on the concrete, crumpled and discarded.

The smoldering rage Ghost had carried for months flared into white-hot fury. "Rose! Neko! They've killed Jayesh and almost killed me! Bring your Guardians to these coordinates!" He also sent them images of what he was seeing. Their shock and rage flowed to him through their Light.

"Coming, Ghost," Rose said.

"On our way," Neko said.

Calling for help wasn't enough. Ghost turned his fury on Yaleesa's ghost.

Her ghost was comfortably phased, watching these doings, passive.

Ghost spoke to it on the private channel. "Don't you see what they've done to my Guardian?"

"Yes," it replied. "You're supposed to be dead."

"Surprise," Ghost snarled. "How can you condone the murder of Guardians and ghosts?"

"It's all the same to me," the other ghost replied. "Darkness, Light - all constructs by human minds to describe the same energy source. It doesn't matter if people die or live. There's no meaning to existence."

"You sound like the Darkness, itself!" Ghost said, aghast. "What has your Guardian done to you?"

"Embrace the Void," the other ghost said. "And by the way, your Guardian is pathetic. He deserved to die and give his life force to those who will use it better."

This was too much for Ghost.

While phased, each ghost existed as a wisp of pure energy, dancing between dimensions. Ghost carried all of Jayesh's over-charged super, the fire, the sword, everything. He gathered that power into an ethereal lance and drove it through Yaleesa's ghost's heart.

It should have been impossible to kill a ghost in phase. Yet Yaleesa's ghost shrieked as it died, its corrupted Light bleeding away into the ether.

Yaleesa gasped, clutching her chest, staggering backward until she hit the wall.

"What is it?" a cultist asked.

"My ghost," she choked. "Something just killed him!"

The cultists leaped to their feet, wildly scanning the room. But they couldn't see Ghost.

He flew over their heads and settled into Jayesh's chest, trailing plenty of extra Light. Despite his body being cold and lifeless, Jayesh's spark still burned warm and bright. All it needed was for Ghost to rebuild his body and kindle that spark to flame. But he couldn't bear to do it in the presence of their enemies, who would try to kill them both. Again.

"A little longer," Ghost whispered to Jayesh, snuggling up to his spark, embracing it with his own Light. "Your team is almost here. I won't let you fade."

* * *

Madrid thundered down a flight of metal stairs, rifle in one arm, still wearing his full armor and helmet. He had only been back at headquarters fifteen minutes when he received Ghost's call for help. Kari galloped behind him, jamming on her helmet and loading her rifle.

So the killers had struck. Poor kid. As long as Jayesh's ghost was alive, it could resurrect him, but what a way to go.

"Don't waste the room," Kari panted over the helmet radio. "Tell them to surrender, first. Then waste them."

"Depends on who it is," Madrid replied grimly, following his navpoints down another flight of stairs. "If it's Guardians, they're going down. I was Crucible champion last season."

Kari laughed bitterly. "So was I, before the invasion. This cult is about to be very, very sorry."

The coordinates took them deep beneath the City's walls, far into the subterranean tunnels built for power and water main maintenance. As they neared a door at the end of the hall, they heard angry voices and shouting from the other side.

"I'll take point," Madrid said, and kicked the door down.

He took in the room at a glance. Cultists wearing the eye of Osiris. Jayesh huddled on the floor in a circle of candles beside a basin full of blood. And a single Warlock, pistols in either hand, her teeth bared as she emptied both magazines into Madrid's chest.

His armor deflected most of the bullets, but two burrowed their deadly way inside him. Hardly had he felt the pain before Rose bathed him in healing Light, dispelling the slugs and mending the damage.

"Fair enough," Madrid said, and fired three arc rounds into the enemy Warlock's torso.

Yaleesa's eyes widened in horror for a second. She dropped her pistols and lifted both hands to the holes in her robe. Then she slowly slumped to the floor, still looking astonished.

Madrid didn't realize the significance of this. He covered the cultists with his rifle, the beginnings of a grenade flickering in his left hand. "Surrender. You're not Guardians. One death is all you get."

Kari moved to a flanking position on his left, also covering the cultists. "Give me a reason," she snarled. "Just one."

Slowly the cultists raised their hands.

"On the floor," Madrid ordered. "You fight, you're dead. Kari, take their weapons." He glanced at the fallen traitor Warlock, but she was dead, slumped against the wall. Funny that her ghost hadn't resurrected her yet.

Madrid called in the capture to the Vanguard's night security team as Kari disarmed the cultists. They carried knives and small arms, and reluctantly handed them over. She hoped one would take a swing at her so she could vent her feelings with a couple of bullets. But the cultists cooperated, as if this wasn't the first time they had been arrested.

The sight of Jayesh on the floor in the ring of candles burned her heart. He was the gentlest, kindest Guardian she had ever met, and he was the one they caught and mutilated.

She worked her way across the room until she could see her fallen friend more clearly. That was when she realized the broken remains of his ghost were mixed with the blood in the bowl.

"Oh god," she whispered, looking closer. "Oh god, Madrid, here's his ghost. They must have got him after he called for help."

Madrid strode across the room and stared into the bowl. For a long moment, neither of them spoke. Then Kari whirled to face the cultists. "Which one of you killed his ghost? Your life is forfeit."

As one, the cultists pointed at the dead Yaleesa across the room.

Kari strode to the corpse and kicked it. "Get up, you filthy excuse for a Guardian. Get up so I can kill you again."

No movement. No ghost appeared.

"If I may," ventured one of the cultists, "something destroyed her ghost just before you arrived."

"Something?" Kari exclaimed, confusion making her angrier. "What kind of something kills ghosts? One of you?"

"Yaleesa was a dedicated member of our order," another cultist said. "We would never attack her. Besides, her ghost was phased when it died."

Kari and Madrid exchanged bewildered looks. "That's impossible," Madrid said. "Unless." He drew his knife and picked through the fragments in the bowl. "Kari, the ghost's core isn't here."

Neko and Rose said together, "Ghost?"

"Go away," Ghost's voice replied.

Kari darted across the room and knelt over Jayesh. She gently pushed his hair back from his face. "Hang in there, Jayesh," she said softly. "Ghost, it's all right. You can bring him back now."

"I wish you could see this," Neko said. "Ghost has so much Light, he's like a little dragon. He's coiled around Jayesh's spark to protect it."

Kari sat back on her heels, tears stinging her eyes. She lifted a hand to wipe them and hit her helmet's faceplate. She pulled it off. "Thank you, Ghost," she whispered.

"Go away," Ghost said, more urgently. "Don't you understand? _I'm not wearing my shell_."

Neko and Rose both laughed hysterically, releasing the tension of the last few minutes. Even Kari and Madrid smiled. Kari turned her back, raising her rifle to cover the cultists again.

Ghost phased into reality, nothing but a small floating globe with an eye in it. He looked furtively around, then poured resurrection Light into his Guardian's body. It swept out of him in a blast, Jayesh's own supercharge returning him to life.

Jayesh drew a breath and opened his eyes.

* * *

The first thing he was aware of was Ghost's life beating in time with his own. He sat up, looking around. "Ghost! Where are you?" He held out one hand hopefully.

Ghost phased into sight again and looked up at Jayesh, pitifully small and naked.

Jayesh gave a sad laugh. He cupped his hands around Ghost, hiding him from sight, only the light of his eye showing.

"They broke my shell," Ghost whispered, embarrassed. "I don't know how you resurrected me, but I came back like a phoenix. I destroyed Yaleesa's ghost. I'm not sure if I'm sorry, yet."

"Stay phased, then," Jayesh whispered. "I'll get you a new shell."

Ghost disappeared in a swirl of particles.

Jayesh gazed around the room, taking in the captured cultists, the dead warlock, and Kari and Madrid standing guard. "What happened?" he asked.

Kari looked over her shoulder. "Your ghost called us for help. Security is on their way to deal with these scum. And _that_ is dead." She nodded at Yaleesa.

Jayesh stood up, rubbing his healed throat. The basin of blood filled him with nightmare terror, so he carefully walked by and kept his back to it. The cultists glared at Jayesh, but none of them dared say a word.

Madrid tossed Jayesh a submachine gun. Jayesh caught it and joined his team in guarding their captives.

"How'd they catch you?" Kari asked.

"She was one of my neighbors," Jayesh said, nodding to Yaleesa. "Just randomly walked by and attacked me. Pretty tricky, the way she forced Ghost out so she could hit him. I've died twice tonight. I'll feel that in the morning."

"No, you won't," Ghost replied in his head. "You're healed."

"Metaphor, Ghost," Jayesh said.

Madrid shook his head. "Geez, kid, brush up on self-defense. This can't keep happening."

"Oh, it won't," Jayesh said. He smiled benignly at the cultists. "And nobody's going to write articles badmouthing me anymore. Will they?"

The cultists shook their heads.

"Because I know who you are," Jayesh said, still in a friendly, conversational tone. "You killed my ghost. And you killed me. So, you might say I owe you one."

The cultists didn't move, but sudden tension rolled off them.

Madrid and Kari gave Jayesh approving looks.

"That's the kind of spine I hoped you had," Madrid said. "Guardian."

"The Traveler is merciful," Jayesh said. "But when it fights, it wins. I could stand to learn a few things from it."

Night security finally arrived at this point. They arrested the cultists, then took the Guardians' statements. Their ghosts took lots of pictures of the ring of candles, the basin of blood, and the shattered ghost shell. They also called for a stretcher to carry out Yaleesa.

The three Guardians were dismissed and made their way back upstairs. Kari and Madrid escorted Jayesh back to his room, and covered the hall in both directions as he unlocked his door.

"Thanks," he told them. They exchanged hugs, Madrid giving him a bump and a back slap, and Kari grabbing Jayesh and holding him tightly. Then they headed for their own apartments.

Jayesh locked the door, dropped into the chair in front of his computer desk, and leaned back, spent. After a moment, he said, "Ghost, it's all right. You can come out."

Ghost appeared, looking like a floating golf ball with no shell. Jayesh lifted him in two fingers, checking him for damage. "Are you hurt?"

"I don't think so," Ghost replied. "My shell broke, but it did its job and protected my core."

"Except for when you died," Jayesh said, gazing into Ghost's eye, looking for cracks. "I felt your spark go out."

"It nearly did," Ghost said, gazing back into his Guardian's eyes. "The Traveler was waiting. But you kept calling me, and your voice kept me here."

Jayesh pressed his lips together and his face contorted, as if holding back tears. He looked away and rested a fist against his mouth. After a moment, he looked up with a smile that was too bright. "Tell me what happened when I sent you my super charge."

Ghost tried to describe the sensation of being revived by more Light than he'd ever possessed before. "I woke up and I was on fire. My entire core, inside and out, was just ... alive with Light. Then that Warlock picked me up to finish the job. I phased without my shell to escape. Then I ... I ..." He trailed off.

"You killed her ghost?"

Ghost nodded. "I spoke to it, first. It had gone completely apathetic. Its Guardian had corrupted it until it didn't care about living or dying anymore. But it said that you deserved what they did to you. So I took your power and destroyed it."

"It wasn't a he or a she?" Jayesh said.

"No," Ghost said. "It had lost that, too. It was too apathetic to even have personality. I think I did it a favor." He looked down. "I feel bad that I don't feel bad."

Jayesh ran his fingers lightly over Ghost's core. "You did it to save me. I'm sorry that we had to kill a Guardian, though. I hope the Traveler takes pity on her corrupt spark."

Ghost floated in silence for a while, letting Jayesh stroke him, letting himself be soothed. The helpless anger he had carried for so long was finally slipping away. Jayesh may have died today, but he had also taken charge, warning his enemies of the consequences of toying with him any further. His Guardian was growing up. While Ghost had been proud of Jayesh before, he was doubly proud, now.

After a while Ghost looked at the computer screen, which Jayesh had turned on.

Jayesh was scrolling through the Eververse online store, looking at ghost shells. The expensive ones.

"Jay," Ghost whispered, "is that for me?"

"Which one do you like?" Jayesh said cheerfully. "I've got enough glimmer to buy one of these, and our tour next week should cover bills the rest of the month."

Not just a new shell. An expensive, luxury shell with all the features. Ghost had forced himself to be content with the most basic shell - he couldn't ask his poor Guardian for luxury shells. Being unable to give him something would only make Jayesh terribly unhappy. But now ... now Jay was offering him such a gift freely.

Ghost hid his eye against Jayesh's palm and cried as well as a ghost could. Jayesh felt it and laughed a little, because it was better than crying, too. He cupped his hands around the little ghost core and rested his forehead against them.

"I have the best Guardian," Ghost whispered in his mind, his joy and grief pouring into Jayesh. "The best, most generous, most loving Guardian there ever was. I can't be separated from you again. Never again. Not like that. Every time you die, I do, too."

"Shh," Jayesh whispered, his heart full to bursting. "We made it, Ghost. I'm here. Shh." He cradled him in both hands. "I know how much a new shell means to you. I want you to look as great as you really are."

"You healed me, Jay," Ghost wept. "It's a ghost's job to heal their Guardian. But you found a way to heal me. And you were dying. You have no idea ... how much that means to me."

Jayesh blinked back the tears that just wouldn't be suppressed any more. When a ghost cried, so did their Guardian. "You were gone, and I was so alone. I was desperate. I can't live without you, Ghost."

They sat there for a long while, Guardian and ghost. Jayesh rocked Ghost like a baby as they worked through the tempest of emotions caused by the last few weeks and months. Slowly they both calmed. Ghost was no longer angry, and Jayesh was no longer afraid. Not when he had both Ghost and the Traveler backing him. At last, Jayesh understood what it meant to be a Guardian - defending the helpless and fighting the enemy ... and sometimes they were the same.

Jayesh chuckled a little, drying his face on his tunic. "It's time I gave you a better name."

"Anything you want to call me is fine," Ghost said, beginning to control himself. "But just ... nothing embarrassing."

Jayesh gazed at the little core in his hands, at the colored marks where the Light had oxidated the metal. If only he could have seen his ghost blazing back to life.

"I think," Jayesh whispered, "I want to call you Phoenix."

Ghost laughed and hiccuped. "I'd like that."

As Ghost - or Phoenix - slowly calmed down, Jayesh relaxed. He hadn't lost his ghost. He had a fireteam, although it was still unofficial right now. The media attacks would stop, and if they didn't, he knew whose door to knock on.

He was proud of his ghost, Phoenix. He was proud of his fireteam.

And for the first time, he was sincerely proud to be a Guardian.

The end


End file.
